Airport traffic edges past storm-hit October, more airlift added

Passenger traffic through Jamaica’s two international airports was slightly higher in October than in the same month last year, when Hurricane Melissa shut both in the final days of the month.

The airports handled a combined 384,300 passengers, up 0.6 per cent from 381,900, according to monthly figures from Pacific Airport Group (GAP), the Mexican operator of both terminals.

Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston handled 126,700 passengers, up 3.7 per cent, reversing a 3.8 per cent decline in September. Its year-to-date traffic is down just 1.3 per cent.

Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay was virtually unchanged at 257,600 against 259,800, a fall of 0.9 per cent and the narrowest year-on-year gap since the storm.

The comparison comes as Melissa struck on October 28 last year and closed both airports. Montego Bay did not resume commercial flights until October 31, so the base month had already lost its final days. October’s result is measured against a month that was itself disrupted, not against a normal one.

YEAR-TO-DATE TRAFFIC

Traffic through Sangster for the first 10 months of 2026 totalled 3.12 million passengers, down 23.9 per cent from 4.11 million in the same period of 2025 – close to a million fewer travellers through the island’s main tourism gateway.

The monthly trajectory has improved in steps. Montego Bay was down 37.7 per cent in January, 23.4 per cent in June, 26.6 per cent in July, 23.0 per cent in August and 16.6 per cent in September before October’s 0.9 per cent.

GAP has held Sangster through MBJ Airports since 2015 and Norman Manley under concession since 2019.

Airlift into Montego Bay is being added for the winter. Porter Airlines said on Monday it will fly non-stop from Hamilton, Ontario, to Montego Bay from December 20, making it the only carrier on that route, and will open twice-weekly service from Ottawa on November 25. The Canadian carrier expects to operate more than 800 flights to warm-weather destinations from Hamilton this season across six markets.

“Porter Airlines’ new unique route from Hamilton to Montego Bay underscores the airline’s continued growth at Hamilton International,” said Peter Tong, chief executive of the Hamilton airport.

Last month, the Jamaica Tourist Board said airlines have committed 1.32 million seats for the January to April 2027 winter season, 23.5 per cent above the comparable 2026 period and equal to 92.4 per cent of capacity before the storm.

Rooms are slower to return, with Tortuga Resorts, which owns the Rose Hall hotels Hyatt manages, indicating that it will spend more than US$400 million rebuilding its Jamaican properties, with phased reopenings beginning in the first quarter of 2027. Hyatt has told investors the hotels should reopen late in that quarter or early in the second.

business@gleanerjm.com